The essential oil extracted from the dried flower buds of clove, Eugenia caryophyllata L. Merr. & Perry (Myrtaceae), is used as a topical application to relieve pain and to promote healing and also finds use in the fragrance and flavouring industries. The main constituents of the essential oil are phenylpropanoids such as carvacrol, thymol, eugenol and cinnamaldehyde. The biological activity of Eugenia caryophyllata has been investigated on several microorganisms and parasites, including pathogenic bacteria, Herpes simplex and hepatitis C viruses. In addition to its antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifungal and antiviral activity, clove essential oil possesses antiinflammatory, cytotoxic, insect repellent and anaesthetic properties. This short review addresses the chemical composition and biological effects of clove essential oil, and includes new results from GC/MS analysis and a study of its antimicrobial activity against a large number of multi-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis isolated from dialysis biomaterials.

The chemical composition and biological activity of clove essential oil, Eugenia caryophyllata (Syzigium aromaticum L. Myrtaceae): a short review.

A review of botanical phytochemicals with mosquitocidal potential.

Trease and Evans' pharmacognosy

Aedes aegypti L. is the major vector of dengue fever, an endemic disease in Brazil. In an effort to find effective and affordable ways to control this mosquito, the larvicidal activities of essential oils from nine plants widely found in the Northeast of Brazil were analyzed by measurement of their LC50. The essential oils were extracted by steam distillation and their chemical composition determined by GL-chromatography coupled to mass spectroscopy. The essential oils from Cymbopogon citratus and Lippia sidoides, reported in the literature to have larvicidal properties against A. aegypti, were used for activity comparison. The results show that Ocimum americanum and Ocimum gratissimum have LC50 of 67 ppm and 60 ppm respectively, compared to 63 ppm for L. sidoides and 69 ppm for C. citratus. These results suggest a potential utilization of the essential oil of these two Ocimum species for the control of A. aegypti.

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Larvicidal Activity of essential oils from Brazilian plants against Aedes aegypti L.

Many essential oils are extracted, analysed and their main components are identified, characterised and then published without any biological testing whatsoever. Their useful biological activities can remain unknown for years. Yet, the search for these activities often increases our knowledge of the potential use of oils in therapeutics. Therefore, there is a real need for a simple, reliable and reproducible methods to study the bioactivity of essential oils and their constituents which can detect a broad spectrum of action or specific pharmacological activities in aromatic plants. These methods can then be employed by natural product chemists, pharmacologists and biologists to conduct their scientific research and to valorize natural products. Standardisation of some of these methods is therefore desirable to permit more comprehensive evaluation of plant oils, and greater comparability of the results obtained by different investigators.

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Methods to study the phytochemistry and bioactivity of essential oils.

Evaluation of some Moroccan medicinal plant extracts for larvicidal activity.

Evaluation of antifungal and molluscicidal properties of extracts of Calotropis procera.

The extracts of 12 plants selected on the basis of the folk-medicine reports were examined for their antibacterial effects against eight pathogenic bacteria. The n-butanol extract of Calotropis procera flowers and the aqueous extract of Eugenia caryophyllata proved to be the most effective against the bacteria tested.

M. Larhsini

Papers

Evaluation of some Moroccan medicinal plant extracts for larvicidal activity.

Evaluation of antifungal and molluscicidal properties of extracts of Calotropis procera.

Antibacterial activity of some Moroccan medicinal plants

Antioxidant activity and enzymes inhibitory properties of several extracts from two Moroccan Asteraceae species

Chenopodium ambrosioides var. ambrosioides used in Moroccan traditional medicine can enhance the antimicrobial activity of conventional antibiotics